LIMERICK — Brandon Vance might be soft-spoken both on and off the golf course, but the Methacton junior wasn’t real shy about sharing the aggressive mindset he took into Wednesday’s final round of the District 1 Tournament at Turtle Creek.

“I didn’t want to just make the cut (to PIAA Eastern Regionals),” he said. “I wanted to win it.”

Through 13 scintillating holes, Vance was in prime position to do that. He found himself 3-under on the round and 1-under for the tourney heading to the finishing five.

Unfortunately, a wayward tee shot at No. 14 led to a triple bogey that effectively ended his title hopes.

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Still, the Pioneer Athletic Conference champion rebounded nicely to go even par for his final four holes en route to an even-par 72 and two-day total of 2-over 146 that earned him a sixth-place finish in the AAA field and a berth in next week’s PIAA Eastern Regional Tournament.

Holy Ghost Prep freshman Steve Cerbara shot a 1-under 71 for a total of 2-under 142 that earned him a two-shot victory over C.B. East senior Stewart Rickenbach.

Vance was the only one of the three area boys golfers that competed Wednesday to move on.

Spring-Ford junior Bennett Detweiler shot a 79 for a 154 that left him two shots shy of the 16-player Eastern Regional cut. Spring-Ford sophomore Matt Keim wound up at 163.

Vance, who said his target score was 69, came out firing with an impressive front nine.

At the par-3, 136-yard third, he hit a pitching wedge to within 15 feet and drained the putt for his first birdie of the day.

One hole later, he smashed a perfect drive at the dogleg left par-4, knocked his approach to within 10 feet and dropped another birdie putt.

“My putting was really good at the start,” he said.

As were his irons. At the par-5 No. 8, he laid up with his second shot to set up a wedge from 110 yards out the set up a six-footer for birdie to get him 3-under for the round.

“Definitely my iron striking was spot on,” Vance said. “Even if I pulled a drive or something, I could still get (the approach) close enough to have a shot at birdie.”

After a sweet bunker shot led to a tap-in par at the ninth, Vance continued his strong play on the backside despite windy conditions more suited for the British Open.

He reeled off four straight pars from 10 to 13, with good looks a birdie on the latter three.

At the par-4 No. 14, however, Vance made what was perhaps his only mistake of the day. His back foot slipped a bit as he was hitting his drive, which wound up being pulled as a hook wind sent it perilously down the left side, where it caught a bit of the cart path before settling just a few feet out of bounds. Vance wound up making a seven.

“This year, I’ve been able to do a lot better job of forgetting about bad holes, but it’s pretty tough to forget about a triple bogey,” Vance said.

Vance bounced right back at the par-3 15th, though, coaxing in a 20-foot putt from the front fringe to get back to red figures on the day.

“That putt definitely kept me in the round,” he said.

Vance made par at 16 before dropping a shot at the par-4 17th, which was playing into the wind. He had a downhill 22-foot bid for birdie at the par-5 18th that ran over the right edge of the cup before tapping in for par.

“The wind was definitely a factor today,” Vance said. “But I have a low ball flight with my wedges and stuff, and that helped. With the ground not as soft as it was yesterday, my irons were definitely better.”

Vance had qualified for the second day of districts in each of the previous two seasons, missing a playoff for Eastern Regionals by four strokes last year.

“As much as I wanted to make the cut, I wanted to win more,” he said.

That said, Vance will continue his strong season Tuesday in the PIAA Eastern Regional at Berks County’s Golden Oaks.

“Brandon puts a lot of pressure on himself, but I think that’s also why he’s at the level he’s at,” Methacton coach Kevin Flanagan said. “Today he had one of the low rounds of the day under tough conditions.”

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In the District 1 Girls Tournament, which concluded at Turtle Creek Wednesday, Mount St. Joseph Academy sophomore Isabella Dillisio shot a final-round 71 to finish at 137, a stroke ahead of Pennsbury sophomore Jackie Rogowicz.

New Hope Solebury sophomore Mike Massimino (148) won the boys AA tourney. ... Council Rock North shot a four-player score of 300 to win the District 1 Boys team title over Holy Ghost Prep (308). Spring-Ford, getting a 76 from John Foley, a 79 from Detweiler, an 82 from Jack Andrews and an 84 from Eric Rowell, finished ninth at 321. Boyertown, with Lamar Saxon’s 83, Travis Pley’s 87, Carlo Barrasse’s 89 and Dylan Miller’s 91, was 12th at 350. ... New Hope Solebury won the Boys 1-AA team title with a 331.

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